Brooksville veteran earned Silver Star after putting his life on the line for fellow troops

The Silver Star is the third-highest military decoration for bravery in combat. David Smith, a special forces veteran living in Brooksville, earned his Silver Star in 2016 while serving in Afghanistan.

While on a nighttime operation in the northern city of Kunduz, an insurgent threw a grenade at Smith and his fellow soldiers. 

With disregard for his own life, he picked up the grenade and threw it behind a nearby wall. It exploded just feet from where he stood.

Although Smith was shielded from the shrapnel of the grenade, he says the blast did give him a traumatic brain injury.